Monday, April 14, 2014

The Minnesota Fighting Saints ** First **

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AVCO CUP

WHA

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Home: St. Paul, MN

Games of the original Fighting Saints were heard on WLOL Radio (1330 AM) from 1972 to 1976, with Frank Buetel as play-by-play announcer. Buetel was the original TV voice of the NHL's Minnesota North Stars from 1967 to 1970 on WTCN-TV (now KARE-TV). Buetel's color commentators included Roger Buxton and Bob Halvorson, the Saints' first-season public relations director (1972–73), and Bill Allard (1973–76). No local radio station carried games of the New Fighting Saints (1976–77).

Fighting Saints games were televised sporadically on WTCN. The first WTCN game was a home contest versus Cleveland on Dec. 23, 1973, with Buetel and Allard simulcasting. Buxton called subsequent games on WTCN.

On January 7, 1973, CBS aired its first WHA game between the Fighting Saints and Winnipeg Jets live from the new St. Paul Civic Center with Ron Oakes, Gerry Cheevers and Dick Stockton announcing. In the 1973–74 season, one Saints home game was carried on KTCA-TV (PBS).

The main sportswriters who covered the Fighting Saints were Charley Hallman of the St. Paul Pioneer Press-Dispatch and John Gilbert of the Minneapolis Tribune.

FRANK BUETEL

Among the Saints' notable players in their brief history were Wayne Connelly (the team's career scoring leader), Mike Walton, Mike Antonovich (the team's career games leader), Ted Hampson, Dave Keon, John McKenzie and Rick Smith, tough guys Jack Carlson, Gord Gallant, Curt Brackenbury, Bill Butters and Paul Holmgren and goalies Mike Curran and John Garrett. In the 1974 WHA semifinals against Houston, controversial forward Bill "Goldie" Goldthorpe played three games for the Fighting Saints, compiling no points and 25 penalty minutes.